Frank Okongwu

After working at MENCAP as a learning support worker and progressing up the career ladder to a Duty Manager, Frank decided he wanted to help pave the way for young people and inspire others to pursue a career in the Health & Care sector and decided to retrain as a teacher.

Frank is now a Higher Education Health & Social Care Lecturer at Middlesbrough College and brings his wealth of industry experience to his students at College.

Frank said “I wanted to inspire others and have an impact so that’s why I decided to train as a teacher. I absolutely love my job and I enjoy seeing the students succeed and achieve.” 

As well as being passionate about teaching and education, Frank is the Public Relations Officer for Ndi Igbo Northeast England (NINEE), an ethnic group native to the present-day South Central and Southeastern Nigeria. The society celebrates sharing cultural values and regularly attend community events.

Frank said “For me everything is about expanding knowledge and this is exactly what NINEE does. It allows people to share a different culture and understand our cultural values.

“The society takes up a lot of my spare time and some highlights of mine include performing at St Oswald’s 5k run and in Care Homes across the region. Our performances involve dance, song, chants and spoken word- it’s a lot of fun and great to share with members of the community.”